General Motors Co. said it will purchase 200 million shares of stock held by the U.S. Treasury Department in the first step of the government's eventual exit from the automaker within the next 12 to 15 months, the Wall Street Journal reported today. The auto maker will pay $5.5 billion for the shares in a deal that is expected to close by the end of the year. The repurchase price of $27.50 a share represents a 7.9 percent premium over the closing price on Dec. 18. The U.S. Treasury plans to sell its remaining shares of common stock through the market and may begin the disposition of its holdings as soon as January.
